#resistancefree

Photo & Poem: Weather Change

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Hail blown sideways by the wind, dark clouds churning across the horizon, as the horses brace against the stinging ice pellets, their noses tucked tight to their chests, running for shelter. A stark reminder on this hot summer day, torn leaves stripped to the ground, intermingled with ice, standing water everywhere, that seasons so long … Read more

Photo & Poem: Breakout

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  Our horses are not young, neither are we. We negotiate with winter, bartering against the wind that our horses might have shelter, might have this small farm to hold them. We’re hostage to them, more than they are to us. We make ourselves useful, driving to town to take jobs caring for others to … Read more

Part Two: Norman, Is That You? (The Reactive Horse)

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Last week, I wrote about horses who are The Strong Silent Type. This horse is the opposite. Describing him sounds like reading the judge’s comments on a marginal dressage test: Tense in the back. Tight in the poll. Hollow. Too quick. It doesn’t stop there. He has twitchy eyes, a furrowed brow, and he clenches his jaw. … Read more

Reciprocity: A Softer Ask, a Softer Bend

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WM Clara ShoulderI overheard some riders complaining like old campaigners. Asking a horse for bend sounded like the Hundred Years‘ War. They weren’t mean, just grumbling that it was hard to make the horse do what they wanted. Their voices heavy with dread, I had a feeling that their horses probably weren’t wild about them either.

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